Turn off the TV. Close your laptop. Put away the phone. It’s time to eat, and just eat.

We’ve gotten so busy and used to multi-tasking, that many of us have forgotten how to eat. Dinners feel weird if we’re not watching YouTube or a show on Netflix at the same time.

What should be one of the most pleasurable and relaxing moments of the day often turns into a hurried ritual to silence hunger pangs.

As a result, food is eaten without experiencing its full flavor and enjoyment. We also started losing our ability to hear our bodies tell us when we’re full, and we’ve gotten fatter in the process.

It’s time to go back to the basics and slow down…and also stop eating like a duck.

Lenny: I dunno. Pigs tend to chew. I’d say he eats more like a duck.

What is mindful eating?

Mindfulness is being fully present with your current experience. This means that your mind is not wandering, but is instead attentively observant of the mental activity and bodily sensations occurring right now.

Mindful eating is nothing more than paying attention to what it feels like to eat.

I bet many of you associate eating meditation with eating like a monk. I know I did. I held an image of eating with my eyes closed, breathing deeply, and chewing 150 times before swallowing. I thought mindful eating was going to turn meals into discipline training, and that did not sound fun at all.

Let go all of those misperceptions.

Like with any meditation, eating meditation should be relaxed and natural. It should never be a strain.

You’re supposed to chew faster than this:

Here’s how I do it.

10 Steps to Eat Mindfully

Make the dinner table free of distractions.

Before starting your meal, take 2-3 breaths, focusing on the sensations of breathing. This will help corral your mind back to the present.

As you breathe, think of something to be grateful for. Food tastes and digests better when you’re happy.

Start to eat and chew normally.

Notice what the food smells like and sounds like as you chew.

Now, place your full awareness in your mouth.

Start with your tongue. Experience what the tongue is sensing– the texture, the flavors, the heat. Also observe how the tongue glides around your food, behaving almost autonomously.

Pay attention to what your teeth feel like when you chew. Notice how the structure and texture of the food changes with each bite.

Observe your body’s urge when it wants to swallow. Don’t try to change or delay it, just notice how quickly or slowly your body wants to swallow once it starts chewing. Establishing this awareness is a key step in preventing overeating.

Finally, pay attention to when you feel satiated. The goal is to identify the moment you’re not hungry and to stop before feeling stuffed.

The Health Benefits presented in If You Give a Mouse a Cookie mode:

If you eat mindfully, your food will taste better.

When your food tastes better, you will appreciate it more.

When you appreciate it more, you’ll want to savor every bite.

When you savor every bite, you’ll chew more slowly.

When you chew more slowly, you will hear your body tell you when it’s full.

When you know that you’re full,

You’ll STOP.

When you stop, you won’t overeat.

When you don’t overeat, you’ll get healthier.

When you’re healthier, you’ll look and feel great!

When you look and feel great, you’ll love yourself more.

When you love yourself more, food will stop being an enemy and start being your friend.

When food is your friend, you’ll dream about your next meal.

When you find yourself dreaming about your next meal,

you will realize that you’re being mindful about being mindful.

And that’s a good rabbit hole to be in.

Here’s a throwback for you, because being a 2nd grader is so awesome…

They seriously need to bring back Reading Rainbow. LAVAR!

Mindful Tastebuds

As you practice eating mindfully you may experience a heightened taste sensitivity to the foods you normally eat. Things will start tasting too salty, too sweet, or too heavy.